


One Mistake

by Victorious56



Series: Numerically Speaking [1]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt, Infidelity, M/M, not explicit or graphic in any way, of sorts, recounting of a somewhat one-sided sexual encounter, this is a bit bleak tbf
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-08
Updated: 2020-08-08
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:29:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,947
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25782907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Victorious56/pseuds/Victorious56
Summary: One mistake. One stupid mistake.And suddenly, everything was ruined.
Relationships: Qrow Branwen/Clover Ebi
Series: Numerically Speaking [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1870408
Comments: 6
Kudos: 36





	One Mistake

**Author's Note:**

> The idea for this was triggered by a storyline in The Archers (of all things).  
> It's a bleak situation, but one some couples have to face. It will be resolved in the next part of the series.
> 
> I should add that this contains a recounting by one of the characters of a sexual encounter. It's not graphic in any way, and because it's after the event, there is no mention of whether consent was requested. If this isn't something you want to read, please click away now.

Qrow woke up suddenly. He stretched an arm across the bed.

Still empty.

Squinting at the time, he rubbed his eyes and sat up.

He looked again.

One-thirty? Why wasn't Clover back yet?

He checked his scroll. The most recent message was timed at a quarter past eleven, Clover bemoaning the fact he'd gone to the function at all. _It was good to see the cadets presented, the meal was okay, but since then it's just been tedious convo after tedious convo. I'm gonna try and duck out soon._

Qrow wasn't worried, not as such. He wondered what situation Clover had got into, what problem he'd taken upon himself to sort out. He'd hear all about it in the morning, for sure.

Qrow rolled over in bed and drifted back to sleep. Only to be startled awake about half an hour later, as the front door smacked against the wall with a crash.

"Clover?" he called groggily from the bed.

"'S only me." A mumbled voice sounded at the bedroom door, followed by a thump as Clover knocked into the dresser.

"Someone over-indulged, by the sound of it." Qrow would make the most of this in the morning; he so rarely got the chance to poke fun at the younger man for any kind of misdemeanour.

"Sorry I'm late; gonna have a shower."

"Are you sure that's wise? In your current condition?"

"Need to. Have to, before I get into bed." Clover pulled off the last of his clothes awkwardly, stumbling as he headed for the bathroom. "Won't be long."

Qrow lay quietly, almost falling back into sleep, listening to the progress of Clover's shower. Apart from some bumps and a muttered curse or two, he finished without mishap. He was about to get into bed, when Qrow said, "You should drink some water. Before you go to sleep."

"Mmm, good idea."

"Actually, let me get it." Qrow thought it better not to let Clover get a glass from the kitchen cupboard. He brought the water through, and Clover drank it greedily.

"Thanks, Qrow."

"No problem. I hope you can get to sleep okay." Qrow settled back down, Clover edging close and putting an arm across his chest.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Qrow. I shouldn't have done it..."

"Well, maybe not to this extent. But, just because I don't drink, doesn't mean you can't. Though I'm grateful you didn't make me come with you tonight."

"Should've come. Wouldn't have happened if you'd been there." Clover's voice was drifting into incoherence as he became drowsy. "I'm so sorry..."

Qrow grinned to himself in the darkness. Captain Ebi was going to have the mother of all hangovers in the morning.

He turned onto his side with a yawn, Clover's hand a weight against his waist.

❖

Fortunately for Clover, there was no early briefing the following morning. His head was as bad as Qrow had expected it to be, and after he returned from the bathroom—having vomited until there was nothing left—he crawled back into bed. "I might just stay here for a bit."

Qrow looked at him with concern. "Can I get you anything? At least have some water."

He held out a glass, which Clover took without looking at him. "Thanks, Qrow." His voice was hoarse as he returned the glass to Qrow.

"I won't ask how the evening went. I guess it was pretty boring? If you're lucky you might not remember much of it." He chuckled, laying a hand on Clover's shoulder. "I'll leave you to get some rest; I'll be back after breakfast."

Clover mumbled into the pillow, and Qrow turned to leave. He didn't see Clover's shoulders begin to shake, didn't hear the muffled sobs pressed into the pillow as he left the room.

  


When Qrow returned from breakfast, Clover was lying on his back, breath rasping. His face was damp, and Qrow wondered if he was sickening for something. _That might explain why he was in such a bad way when he got back_. He fetched a damp cloth and carefully wiped Clover's forehead, feeling it with the back of his hand. _Hmm, doesn't seem warmer than usual_.

Clover opened his eyes. "You're back," he said thickly. "Gods, my mouth feels like it belongs to someone else."

Qrow smirked. "You're paying the price for an evening's enjoyment. At least, I hope it _was_ enjoyable."

Clover stared at him, his mouth a thin line. He struggled to push himself into a sitting position. "Qrow, I need to say—"

"You've said sorry enough, Clover. Over and over last night, though you may not remember."

"No, not just that. I have to... there's something you need to know, and I don't want— you mustn't hear it from anyone else."

Qrow's brows knitted together. "Okay..." he said slowly, taking a seat in the chair in the corner of the bedroom.

Clover drew his knees up, resting his chin on them. His hands fussed with the bedspread, pleating the fabric repeatedly as he stared at his fingers with unseeing eyes.

"Something happened... last night. You're going to hate me, but I have to tell you. It's the least I can do."

Qrow felt his breakfast settle heavily in his stomach, a dead weight which tugged at his heart. "Go on."

"It was a boring evening. Well, the presentations were okay, but otherwise... so many stuffed shirts. Academy sponsors, aristos who'd paid gods only know how much lien to be there... so many people I didn't know, James kept bringing them up to show us... show me off. Like I was someone special." The bitter laugh was one Qrow had never heard before.

"It was late... I'd messaged you and said I hoped to get away soon—"

"I saw that. I was a bit worried when you still weren't back a couple of hours later, but I reckoned Jimmy kept you till the very end."

"Not quite." Clover shot him a glance. "I was about to leave; I'd probably had more to drink than I should've. I didn't realise how much... if only you'd been there, Qrow! It would have been alright." He looked at the older man, tears seeping from his eyes. "It wouldn't have..."

"Clover, you're scaring me. _What happened_?"

Clover's quiet, hesitant voice was the only sound. "As I left the main reception, I got a bit lost. You know these big, swanky hotels. One wrong turn and you're in a maze of corridors and everything looks the same. Anyway, I managed to find my way back to the public area, and... I bumped into someone."

Qrow sat rigidly, twisting one of his rings back and forth.

"He was someone I'd known at the Academy... he left Atlas years ago, I hadn't seen him since. He persuaded me to have one last drink so we could catch up. It was so late anyway, I thought one drink wouldn't make much difference."

Qrow looked across at Clover. His boyfriend sat rigidly in their bed, fingers now twisting the bedspread into a tight ball.

"I stayed longer than I meant to. It was good to talk about what we'd been doing, but I was tired, I felt a bit... off. So I got up to go; he said he was leaving too. We went out, and then..."

Qrow wished he was far, far away. In a place where his heart had never been captured by a friendly, warm, caring man. A place where it was so cold, he didn't have to feel.

"It was stupid. A cliche. There was some sort of storeroom... I don't even know. He was saying things... he'd always wanted to... get with me, back then, but never did... and this was like fate, a chance not to miss out again..."

Qrow opened his mouth, managing to speak at last. "What did you do?" _I don't want to know. Don't tell me. Say you came to your senses, and left, and that's all there was..._

"I— didn't do anything, really. He just... we just... he undid my... oh gods Qrow, I'm so sorry, I've been so stupid." Clover's forehead was on his knees, his shoulders shaking as he tried to gulp back the tears.

"Did you fuck him?" Qrow couldn't believe he was asking the question.

"No! No... it was just... his hand, and some stupid, stupid, kissing. I could've stopped him... _should've_ stopped him... I don't know why I didn't. And when... afterwards, he said we should have got together years ago, and he left, and I—"

"So that's why you had a shower when you got in? So I wouldn't realise what you'd done." Qrow spoke slowly, as if he was working things out as he went.

"No, not that. I felt— dirty, I wanted to scrub everything away. I felt sick, and I was scared. Scared of what I'd done."

Qrow stood up. "You were right to be." He took a deep breath, trying to steady his voice. "Well, I'm glad you had a pleasant evening, and how nice for you to meetan old friend." His voice was colder than anything Clover had ever experienced in all his years living in Atlas. "I'll collect my stuff from here later, and move back into my own room, and if you can avoid putting us on the same missions in future, that would be good."

Clover stared at him, uncomprehending. "What d'you mean? You're moving out?"

"Yeah, what did you expect? A quick _sorry about that_ and we just go on like before?" Qrow's body trembled, his fists clenching. His breath hitched as he continued. "I thought this was it. Thought there was finally someone I could be with, who'd be safe with me... who made _me_ feel safe. Turns out, I'd got it wrong. Of course I did."

He crossed the bedroom. A short moment later, Clover heard the front door pulled shut.

❖

A couple of days later, Ruby asked Qrow, tentatively, why he was back in his own room.

"Uh, well, y'know, kiddo, sometimes these things just don't work out. That's life." He ruffled her hair, pulling her into an unexpected hug. "That's just how it is."

Ruby heard the catch in his voice, and hugged him back, as hard as she could. "I'm sorry, Uncle Qrow."

"Yeah, pipsqueak. Me too."

  


The following week, Qrow left for Haven. There was a lot of work to do there, and he'd told James he was happy to do it. "I'd rather be where I'm the most use."

James wanted to ask Qrow what had happened, but the expressionless voice, the utter bleakness in Qrow's eyes, made him think that silence was best.

"Now we have comms again, you'll keep me updated with how things are there? Regularly, Qrow? And if you need any information on anything here..."

"I'll be sure to ask." Qrow's eyes met James', and a moment later, he was gone.

  


If some of team RWBY and the others were surprised at Qrow's sudden departure, Ruby tried to reassure them. "He said it's a reflection of how well we're doing, that he's able to go and do important work elsewhere. It won't be forever..."

  


If the Ace Ops noticed a detachment in their leader, a coolness and reserve that hadn't been there before... they said nothing. It wasn't their problem.

  


And if Clover found life easier when he focussed on work, and tried to lock other thoughts away, that was his concern. He didn't need to share this with anyone else.

There was no-one to see him, when he found an old t-shirt of Qrow's amongst the clothes in his dresser.

There was no-one to see him cry.

**Author's Note:**

> Friendly comments always appreciated, thank you.


End file.
